蜻蜓目蟌科物种多样性高、分布广泛、种群数量大、易于捕捉，世界范围内广泛用作进化生物学、生态学、行为学、生态环境监测等诸多研究领域的模式生物和指示生物。中国蟌科分类学研究尚不完善，已有研究过于侧重雄性成虫而忽视雌性成虫和稚虫，大部分种类不能将雌虫、稚虫与同种雄成虫对应起来，常导致鉴定错误，从而制约了其他相关研究的开展。造成这一问题的主要原因是蟌科雌性和稚虫的形态特征较难把握，仅凭比较形态学方法不能有效解决这一问题。DNA条形码技术不依赖外部形态特征，不受个体发育阶段及性别的限制，可将同种的雌雄成虫及稚虫之间准确对应起来。本研究将在原有形态分类工作基础上，应用基于DNA条形码技术的分子鉴定技术对中国蟌科雌性及稚虫进行准确的鉴定，建立蟌科条形码数据库，并通过扫描电镜及显微摄影等比较形态学手段，力求发现蟌科雌性及稚虫的可靠的形态鉴定特征。

Species of family Coenagrionidae (Insecta: Odonata) have high diversity, broad distribution, large population numbers, and are easy to catch and record. Therefore they are globally used as research models or bioindicators in Ecology, Behavior, Evolution, etc. However, in China, little relative research has proceeded since taxonomy on Chinese Coenagrionidae is far from completed. Chinese researchers usually care more about male adults. Female adults and larvae of this family usually can not be identified to species level. The major reason is that, generally, not so much diagnostic morphological characters of female adults and larvae can be found as in male adults. Traditional comparative morphology methods encounter a tough time in comparing the same species of male, female and larvae..DNA Barcoding is an excellent method in species identification which is not limited by any morphological features and ontogeny period. With DNA Barcoding method this project will make out a completed identification on female adults and larvae of Chinese Coenagrionidae. Again a DNA Barcode database of Chinese Coenagrionidae will be set up. We will also try to find out some new credible morphology diagnostic features of female adults and larvae of Chinese Coenagrionidae through comparative methods such as SEM, photomicrography and so on. We believe that DNA Barcoding method will has a bright future in the biodiversity research of Chinese Odonata.